If you want the best diet for diabetics, focus more on your food choices instead of a tailor-made meal plan.
All these food choices will play a key role in managing your diabetes while providing enough energy and nutrition to your body.
What is the best diet for diabetics?
It depends on age, gender, physical activity, and fitness goals. And yes, no single diet can be deemed a ‘perfect one’ for diabetes.
So, the key here is to pick the best food options from the available food groups.
Additionally, you may have to decrease the consumption of a particular food item while increasing your consumption of others. You also have to pay special attention to the portions and serving sizes.
Before you go any further with the best diet for people with diabetes, learn about the available food groups and their significance in reducing blood sugar.
List of Printable Meal Plans for Diabetes
Understanding the main food groups
Fruits and vegetables
Even if you are diagnosed with diabetes, it doesn’t mean that you cannot consume fruits and vegetables.
Most fruits and veggies are low in calories but contain essential vitamins, fiber, and minerals.
Moreover, they add a lot of flavor and texture to each meal. When selecting suitable fruits and vegetables, you must choose those with a low glycaemic index.
This will ensure their minimal impact on your blood sugar after consumption.
Conversely, check for fruits and vegetables lower in carbs and go easy on your digestive system.
You can choose fruits and vegetables like melon, grapefruit, berries, dates, apricots, carrots, peas, green beans, mushrooms, cucumber, spinach, cauliflower, broccoli, and lettuce.
All these fruits and vegetables are lower in carbs and contain all the required vitamins and minerals.
Starchy foods
An average person’s diet contains a lot of starchy foods like rice, bread, potatoes, and pasta.
All of these food options are high in carbohydrates, which is why they cannot be considered healthy for a person diagnosed with diabetes.
This is because most starchy foods trigger a spike in blood glucose, making it tough for the person to manage their diabetic condition.
There are specific options, like whole-wheat bread, pasta, and brown rice, which are high in fiber and low in carbs. So, you can try them out as better alternatives to starchy foods in your daily diet.
Protein
Your body requires protein to maintain the health of your muscles, tissues, skin, and bones.
Still, being diagnosed with diabetes, you must avoid red and processed meat, as it comes loaded with certain compounds and chemicals harmful to your health.
You can further opt for various seeds and nuts to add a bit of variety to your protein consumption.
Speaking of the portion and serving sizes, your daily meals must contain at least one or two portions of proteins.
Dairy products
Regarding dairy products, you must always stay mindful and cautious regarding their serving size.
Most dairy options like milk, cheese, and yogurt come loaded with high-quality protein and calcium that is significant for the health and well-being of your bones, muscles, and teeth.
Still, specific dairy options contain saturated fat that is quite harmful to your health.
So, when going for a dairy product, check for any preservatives or added sugar to the mix.
If you are looking for yogurt, opt for unsweetened yogurt, or you can even add certain fruits to grab that required taste and texture.
List of foods that needs to be avoided
As you’re looking for the best diet for diabetics, you must avoid certain food items high in salt, sugar, and fat.
Food items like chocolates, ice cream, biscuits, and sugary beverages must be avoided.
All these options are high in calories and further, lead to a spike in your blood sugar levels.
Besides, they come loaded with all the unwanted calories and healthy saturated fats, which are unsuitable for your heart health.
Bottom line for the best diet for diabetics
Bringing the perfect blend of all the food options mentioned above will help you create the best diet for diabetics.
Consult your doctor or physician to enquire about your dietary requirements according to age, gender, and physical activity.
If your diabetic level is reading on or above 300 mg/dl, get medical care immediately. If you don’t have insurance, check grants provided by the government for diabetics.
